Fish     Yoga Mudra     Shoulder Stand

Sukh-Purvak     Meditation     Chanting

These are the same as the last Chakra, #6. There is a separate page devoted to each of these in the Postures series (you will find this title in the navigation menu on every page, upper left). This page is only a summary of specific postures for the Sahasrara Chakra. You can click on the links below to get the full instructions for each posture. There are many other reasons for practicing these other than to work with the Chakras, which are given in detail.

I suggest printing these pages to practice the preliminary stretches before you attempt any of these Yoga postures. Once you have stretched your muscles to the point where you can do a posture, you know you have come a long way in healing your body and making it stronger.

Remember, these links—which are always a turquoise color on this site—will take you to the detailed instructions for each posture.

 

Seated Yoga Mudra (Mudra = sealed)

Yoga Mudra is a classic Yoga posture that vitalizes many part of the body at the same time. It is a wonderful way to learn to sit with your legs crossed, or in the lotus posture (as shown here), to be stable for meditation with the back straight. This image is from my YogaNata DVD where I dance slowly to music until the energetics in the third section, when my body shakes loose like a dog coming out of water. It is available in the Products section of this site (see navigation menu above left), and there is also a link on every page in the left column with more details. Yoga Mudra is shown in various postures on this site. This link is specific to Mudras and Bandhas. To learn how to do the preliminary exercises to sit in this posture (lotus), go to Padmasana.

 

Fish Posture
Matsyasana (Matsya = fish)

The back is fully stretched (the dorsal especially). The chest is expanded like a rooster. Strong and quick abdominal breathing opens up the entire body in a beautiful way. The entire body is stretched. This opens up the heart, the throat, the head and the crown, which are the areas of the top 4 Chakras. This helps to open these Chakras. Click on the link for complete details with preliminary stretches.

 

Shoulder Stand - Sarvangasana

There are many variations to this posture, and all of them are provided in the Shoulder Stand series (which includes the Plough above). Again, this brings the flow of blood directly into the neck and head, just as it did for the 5th and 6th Chakras.

 

Sukh-Purvak

An entire series is devoted to Breath on this site, so this link takes you to the Sukh-Purvak page of that series. This is a powerful breath method to open the Chakras. This is the last page of the Chakra series. You can always return by clicking Chakras in the above left menu, or continue from the Breath series to another category.

 

Meditation

The Meditation series if often referred to on this site, because it is just as important to find a way to open and relax your mind to joy as it is to exercise your body for health and strength. There are too many meditations to list on this page. There are also links to meditations in other series on this site. If you haven't been there yet, check it out. Find the meditation that works for you and stick with it until you have released tension from your mind completely. You can choose the meditations that specifically target any part of the head, or you can simply meditate on your Crown Chakra. Read Chakra6_5.html to get all the keywords and make it easier for you. The link is provided below.

 

Chanting

I wrote about chanting in the Vissudha series (5th Chakra). I have no idea what this image means, but it is Sanskrit script. As I wrote in a previous page in this series, the entire Sanskrit language was created intentionally with sound frequencies in mind. It is not an easy language to learn. I wrote in My Story (provided on every page of this site in the upper left navigation menu) how my teacher, Eugenia Basilewsky, read ancient Sanskrit texts and then translated them for me in Swedish or English for many years. She had studied the Sanskrit language for 30 years. We used to sit together and chant something she chose from the ancient texts. There are no words to describe what this meant and what we experienced together.

The Headstand is also given for this Chakra (like the 6th Chakra), but that is one of the postures that requires personal attention from a teacher for beginners. If you have been practicing Yoga for a while, then you have probably already learned how to do it right. One word of caution though: If you have hypertension, heart problems, serious eye or ear conditions, or it just feels uncomfortable when you do stand on your head, it's better to let this one go. As I repeat over and over again ... Yoga is about feeling joy. One should be happy when practicing, not frustrated or in pain!

Sivananda's How To Change the Flow in Nadis

The following exercises are for changing the flow from Ida to Pingala. Select any one of the methods that suits you best. To change the flow from Pingala to Ida, just repeat the exercise on the opposite side.

• Plug the left nostril with a small piece of cotton or fine cloth for a few minutes.
• Lie down on the left side for 10 minutes.
• Sit erect. Draw the left knee up and keep the left heel near the left buttock. Now press the left armpit, Axilla, on the knee. In a few seconds the flow will be through Pingala.
• Keep your heels together near the right side of the buttocks. The right knee will be over the left knee. Keep the left palm on the ground a foot away and let the weight of your upper body rest on the left hand. Do not bend the elbow. Turn your head to the left side. This is an effective method. Catch hold of the left ankle with the right hand.
• The most effective and instantaneous result is produced by changing the flow. Turn your tongue inside. This blocks the air passage by the tip of the tongue.

Practice every day to allow the flow of breath through the left nostril during the day and through the right nostril during the night. This will, doubtless, bestow on you wonderful benefits.

If you want to review the Sahasrara Chakra, the links are provided below. From here you can choose another series altogether by scrolling up to the navigation menu (top left).